The night was deep, the sky was getting late, and the people in the Guozijian in the Juxian Building gradually had wine, and the 'King of Gaoyan' had left, the sense of oppression suddenly disappeared, and the conversation began to be presumptuous.

The topic went around and around, and they couldn't get around the current situation, and they began to discuss the struggle between the two parties. Although most of these officials are Qingliu and support Xu Jie, what Shen Mo didn't expect was that they all thought that the Xu Party would win in this struggle!

Could it be that Xu Jie's mass foundation is so solid? Shen Mo muttered secretly, and continued to listen carefully, until he finally discovered the source of the confidence of these people, but it made him laugh and laugh...... Because they think that Xu Jie's basis for replacing Yan Song is actually a nursery rhyme that has become quite popular recently:

'The high mountains cover the moon, and it is not good; People are even Gonggong, by Mizuki! There are sixteen words in total, and at first glance it is the kind of prophecy that is put together for a certain purpose. For the guessing master Shen Mo, this thing really doesn't have a head - the first sentence 'the mountains cover the moon, and it is not good to be together,', literally, it means that the mountains will cover the moon, so the mountains and the moon should not be together. A little more in-depth study - the mountain is Song, the moon is bright, and the meaning of "unfavorable" means "divided", combined with the literal meaning, you can get the answer to the riddle: the Song of the Fenyi will make the moon unclear, so they can't be together.

The second sentence, 'Ren Yi Liangong Gong, by Shuimu' is even more boring - Ren Yi is the generation, the Mu Gong is the pine, and the water is the river, plus the word 'by', you can spell out four words: 'By the Songjiang generation'.

Connecting one or two sentences, the meaning of this rumor is that the Song of the right place is not good for the Ming Dynasty and should be replaced by Songjiang. Who is Song? Yan Song is strict, who is Songjiang? Xu Jie, Xu Hua Tingyan!

In this era, rumors have a mysterious power and can influence the direction of public opinion, such as the ancient 'A Fang A Fang The First Emperor of the Dead', and the early 'Mo Dao Shiren One Eye, Instigating the Yellow River to rebel against the world', are all classic cases of using rumors.

But Shen Mo knew that this thing would not fall from the sky, nor would it jump out of the cracks in the stones, but was made up to deceive the world in order to achieve some ulterior purposes. He couldn't help sneering secretly in his heart, it seemed that Xu Ge Lao was bound to win this time, and he even used the method of using rumors to create public opinion, but he really did everything...... But I have to admire Xu Ge Lao, he is really a connoisseur of proportion! In fact, a rumor will not let Xu Jie replace Yan Song, if it is thrown out when Yan Dang is like Zhongtian, it is likely that not only will it have no effect, but it will also bring disaster. But the matter of Yan Song's kneeling in the Golden Palace in the rain has spread, and Yan Shifan was expelled from the Prime Minister's Mansion, this series of blows made Yan Dang people panic. Xu Jie's rumor was only thrown out at this moment, which could not only make the Yan Party more chaotic, but also make his own morale high, and more importantly, he could also win the support of many wall-riding factions, and the effect was naturally immediate.

Under the strength of the Xu Party, the Yan Party members finally put themselves in danger, and said in their hearts: The weather is cool and autumn...... This is really 'the mountain rain is coming, the wind is full of buildings, and the black clouds are crushing the city and the city is about to be destroyed'!

The second Tingtui began in such an atmosphere.

When Shen Mo came out of the house and arrived outside the gate of Xiyuan, there were already a lot of officials in the court, and as far as the eye could see, all the water was full of big red robes, and they were clearly divided into three groups. Silently and carefully, standing on the left, there are Wan Cai and He Bin, obviously it is the Yan Party, and the group on the right is naturally the Xu Party, and the number is not less than the Yan Party.

There was also a small group of people, and when he saw that Gao Gong and Fang Blunt were inside, he said in his heart that this should be a neutral faction.

When Shen Mo was hesitating how to stand in line, Gao Gong also saw him and beckoned him over, saving him from continuing to hesitate.

Shen Mo walked over and saluted a few adults, and Gao Gong introduced with a smile: "Ladies and gentlemen, this is the new Guozi Priest Wine, but you must have known each other for a long time. ”

Fang Yu and the others smiled and said: "Shen Zhuangyuan's famous women and children all know, and we know each other no matter how lonely and unheard of they are." After a few words of silence and humility, he stood aside in a low-key manner, listening to the exchange of opinions with several adults on the Tingtui, and to his surprise, in the hearts of these neutral officials, Xu Ge Lao's reputation was not much stronger than Yan Ge Lao. These people generally hold a point of view, that is, these two adults are bald and don't laugh at the monks, but they are actually average.

He also heard the ladies sigh that this year's political changes are particularly drastic, and in previous years, the six ministries and nine secretaries, who were always stagnant in the past, have already left one after another in just a few months, including He Ao, the former secretary of the Criminal Department, Zhao Zhenji, Wu Shan, the former secretary of the Ministry of Rites, Wu Peng, the former secretary of the Ministry of Officials, and Yan Maoqing, the former governor of Su Song, and five high-ranking officials of the ministry have left one after another...... All this fully proves how fierce the struggle between the Yan Party and the Xu Party has become.

What's even more terrifying is that this is the precursor to the storm, and the real fight is still to come...... Shen Mo was listening carefully, and suddenly felt a stirring of the crowd, so he was driven by curiosity to look, only to see Yan Ge Lao and Xu Ge Lao's sedan chair, coming from the east and west avenues, almost at the same time in front of the Xiyuan Gate, the two sedan chair men can handle the proportions like this, sure enough, there is a specialization in the art industry!

Under the gaze of everyone, for a few breaths, there was no movement in the sedan chairs on both sides, as if they were asleep.

After a while, the sedan curtain on the east side was finally lifted first, revealing Xu Ge's shrewd and capable old face, his eyes looked at the sedan chair that was not moving at all, sighed imperceptibly, and said to the people around him: "Welcome." With the support of his family, he got off the sedan chair and walked on foot to the sedan chair in front of him.

Seeing Xu Jie getting off the sedan chair and coming over, the sedan chair on the opposite side also moved...... The sedan curtain was opened, and the old man of Yan Ge, who had white eyebrows, said to Yan Nian: "Quick, help me down." ”

Yan Nian, who was standing by the sedan chair, hurriedly stretched out his hand to support the old Shoufu.

Yan Song got off the sedan chair, and Xu Jie also walked in front of him, and respectfully bowed his hand and said, "It's early!" ”

Yan Song also returned the salute without slackening: "Okay, the old pavilion is good." ”

Xu Jie naturally replaced Yan Nian, grabbed Yan Song's right arm and said, "Is Yan Hu's grandmother better?" "'Yan Hu's grandmother' refers to the Ouyang family, Xu Jie's eldest son Xu Pan's daughter married Yan Song's grandson as a concubine, so there will be this title.

Yan Song shook his head and sighed: "It's still the same, alas, it's a day." Saying that, he glanced at Xu Jie and said, "Am I not the same?" After the first month, it will be eighty-three, and it is time to tell the emperor to return to his hometown. ”

Xu Jie didn't know how many times he had heard this...... Yan Song said it when he was seventy, and he would mention it every year after that, and he has been saying it for more than ten years, but he still occupies the thatched hut and doesn't, so the ghost will believe him again. But he still has to say: "Don't! While carrying Yan Song to the gate of the palace, he smiled and said: "The elder of the pavilion has a long life of 100 years, and you have to serve the emperor for at least another twenty years." ”

Yan Song shook his head and smiled, but before he could speak, a voice with hatred interjected: "It's really been twenty years, and some people are going to hate us to death!" "The one who can be so bold and dare to interject when the two bigwigs are talking is no one else except Yan Shifan.

Xu Jie smiled and said: "The little pavilion elder is too careful, you ask the hundred officials of the Manchu Dynasty, who is not looking forward to the longevity of the pavilion elder?" ”

"What a little pavilion old!" Yan Shifan interrupted unceremoniously: "Why haven't I heard that our Ming Dynasty still has this official position?" ”

Xu Jie's face couldn't help but be a little embarrassed...... This title has been called for many years, so much so that in all informal settings, people refer to Yan Shifan in this way, and he is no exception. Who knew that this Yan Shifan turned his face and refused to admit it, making Xu Ge so big that he couldn't come to the stage.

Xu Jie didn't know that Yan Shifan had already been warned by Chen Hong, where did he dare to use this title?

Seeing that the two of them were stiff, Yan Song said slowly: "The hundred officials are looking at us, working together in harmony, helping each other in harmony." At this time, the officials also came up and separated the two, and this little episode passed.

After a short time, a melodious bell rang on the palace gate, and the ministers all stopped, entered the West Garden left and right, and lined up in the main hall of Yuxi Palace.

Following the adults to kneel, when the mountain shouted 'Long live long live, long live, long live', he covered his face with a wat board, peeked at the top of the imperial steps, and saw that it was empty, and the emperor was really not there.

The adults knelt for a while, and then a eunuch's voice said: "There is an edict, and today the court is presided over by the university scholars Yan Song and Xu Jie. ”

"The ministers will receive the order...... "Another mountain shouted.

"Gentlemen, please get up." The eunuch said: "Our family will not disturb your deliberations, and the miscellaneous family has retired." As soon as he spoke, he shook off the dust and flew away.

"Gonggong Li walks slowly......" turned out to be Li Fang, the master of ceremonies.

After Li Fang left, Yan Song sat on the brocade pier, lowered his eyebrows and closed his eyes, and said, "Please host Xu Ge." ”

Xu Jie did not excuse himself as usual, but said respectfully: "Obey the first order." After saying that, he straightened his waist, his eyes swept over everyone, and a momentum of not being angry and arrogant suddenly exuded, only listening to him use the official words with a Songjiang accent, and said slowly and clearly: "Everyone, the Ministry of Officials has submitted to the cabinet to remove Wu Shan, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, and Yan Maoqing, the governor of Su Song. So please feel free to speak. ”

But everyone will not speak casually, because a few days before the court push, each faction has already selected their own candidates, and when the time comes, these can compete for each other, if you mention one casually, it is absolutely useless, and it will be humiliating for yourself.

So in the final analysis, it is still a struggle between the two parties, and others cannot be mixed with it at all. Did the Xu Party take advantage of the situation to pursue and establish a victory, or was the Yan Party unwilling to fail and fought back? Silence waited and watched from the sidelines.

Suddenly felt a chill in the back of his head, silently looked back, it turned out that the door of the temple was wide open, and he stood at the door, naturally became the first greeting object of the cold wind in late autumn, and couldn't help but shrink his neck, looking at the cloudy sky, he suddenly had a hint of foreboding...... After a short silence, the enterprising Xu party elements broke the calm, and Liu Tao, who was in a hurry, came out and said loudly: "I recommend Lord Yan Neyan!" Mr. Yan has no qualifications or virtues, and he is the most suitable candidate. As soon as these words came out, those activists of the Xu Party immediately echoed loudly, trying their best to create a posture that was none other than Yan Ne.

When he heard this, his head immediately grew - although he was now determined to stand by and watch, he had already decomposed Xu Jie at the beginning, if he wanted to carry out the court push of the Ministry of Rites, he must recommend Ouyang Bijin, and he must not be another candidate, but now Xu Dang has launched Yan Ne, and he clearly did not adopt his own suggestions!

God is pitiful, his proposal is completely selfless, but wholeheartedly for Xu Jie's sake!

At the beginning, after Shen Mo attacked Yan Shifan, he knew that his strength was insufficient and he could not compete with the Yan Party, so he went to Xu's Mansion to bow down in person. In order to dispel Xu Jie's concerns, he carefully designed a set of step-by-step and steady counteroffensive plans for them according to the strength and weakness of the two sides - the core step is to fully recommend Ouyang Bijin, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, so that although the Ministry of Rites Shangshu, that is, the number of future cabinet members, is given to the Yan Party, but the vital Ministry of Officials can be taken down, and then rely on the Ministry of Officials to eat away at the strength of the Yan Party step by step, accumulating small victories into big victories, until the situation between the two sides is completely reversed!

At that time, Shen Mo had already taken the trouble to tell Xu Jie all the reasons and consequences of doing so...... Although in Xu Ge Lao's place, he always seems to be raised by his stepmother, but the current enemy is the Yan Party, so he has no secrets!

Shen Mo clearly remembered that he said to Xu Jie at the beginning: 'The Yan Party has rich wings and sharp minions, and if we fight rashly, we will definitely lose both, or even suffer from it, so we must avoid a decisive battle and must not be in a hurry." In fact, he said this to take care of Xu Jie's face, if he told the truth, it would be, 'If there is an all-out war, I don't believe you can win!' Because he believed that a mature politician would only be the tip of the iceberg in his usual strength, and that most of his power would be hidden underwater, and that if he rushed over, he could only turn into the Titanic.

Therefore, he hopes that Xu Jie can continue to be conservative in the face of victory and carry forward the fine tradition to the end...... Originally, Shen Mo thought that it should be no problem for Xu Jie to do this, but he didn't expect it to be like this-he actually recommended Xu Dang's Yan Ne instead of Ouyang Bijin!

What does this mean? This means that the Xu Party does not intend to let go of any fruits of victory, and is greedy for more! Shen Mo didn't know what the consequences would be, maybe he was too careful, but Shen Mo's original belief in the victory of the Xu Party was shaken...... His psychological activities can't affect anyone, and Yan Dang over there will stop doing it immediately, He Bin stood up and said: "I recommend Yuan Wei, if you don't accept it, you can compare it, and see where Lord Yan is stronger than Lord Yuan." "This really can't be compared, because Yuan Wei is one department earlier than Yan Ne, and Yuan Wei was Taichang Siqing before he moved to the siege, and later when he went to Zhan Shifu to move, it was Yan Ne who took his place, so no matter what, Yuan Wei was harder than Yan Ne.

The two sides are arguing with each other, you come and go, naturally no one can convince anyone, and in the end you can only see the real chapter on the beans. Zhang Siwei and Si Zhi, another cabinet member, first sent out beans, saying that mung beans represented Yan Ne and red beans represented Yuan Wei, and then came down with jars to collect.

Shen Mo glanced at the high arch standing in front of him, and saw a mung bean in his hand, and immediately put it away, he knew that this time the high arch chose Yan Ne...... It seems that King Yu's interests are overriding everything, just because Yuan Wei is King Jing's teacher, Gao Gong can't choose him.

While thinking, Zhang Siwei came to him with the jar, looking at the silence in a red robe, Zhang Siwei smiled meaningfully at him, and whispered: "This is the last time I will do this." ”

Shen Mo nodded, and sent the mung beans prepared in his hand into the jar...... No matter how unhappy your heart is, you still have to focus on the overall situation!

After collecting the silence, Zhang Siwei turned around and returned to the front, and respectfully handed it to Xu Jiedao: "Pavilion Elder, there are thirty-two people present today, and a total of thirty-four stators have been collected, please ask Pavilion Elder to check it." "It turns out that on this occasion, beans are not called beans, they are called 'stators'.

"Good work." Xu Jie nodded, then reached out and took the jar, and said to Yan Ge Lao: "Ge Lao, let's start tapping, right?" ”

Yan Song shook his head, and after a while, he said slowly: "I can't see clearly, it's better for Xu Ge to count it himself." ”

Xu Jie glanced at Yan Shifan, who was unusually low-key, and said, "Then, it's better to let Xiao ...... Oh no, Yan Butang is the old number of the pavilion, right? ”

Yan Shifan refused: "Count it yourself, we can trust you." When he said this, a sneer hung on the corner of his mouth, which made Xu Jie's heart rise a little uneasy...... Shaking his head and throwing aside the nasty feeling, Xu Jie poured all the 'stator' on the white cotton cloth in full view of everyone, and began to count them one by one with something like a small hook.

He counted mung beans, which was Yan Ne's...... One, two, three, four, five...... Fifteen, sixteen!

Then I couldn't find a single green bean!

(To be continued)